Festival Guide

Festival 101

CIFF members are the first to be mailed a complimentary CIFF Program Guide when they become available the week of February 23, 2015.

If you are not a member and would like a Program Guide mailed to you, you can purchase one for a shipping fee of $4 per Program Guide via our Merchandise page.

To purchase a Program Guide, follow these steps:

1. Click the SUPPORT US link located at the top right of the home page.

2. Select the Merchandise tab to access a list of available CIFF merchandise.

3. Input the number of Program Guides you would like in the quantity box.

4. Click on ADD TO CART. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added the Program Guide to your cart.

5. If you are done adding items to your cart, click "go to cart" on the pop-up box or click the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

6. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, then click CHECKOUT NOW.

7. Enter your billing information and click CONTINUE.

8. Enter your payment information and hit PLACE ORDER.

You will receive an order confirmation number and a receipt will be sent via email, if provided.

Program Guides are distributed and available for pick up at Dollar Bank locations, Cuyahoga County Public Libraries, Cleveland Cinemas Theatres, and throughout Tower City Center. They are also available at most local and independent coffee shops, restaurants, book stores, boutiques, and community centers throughout the Greater Cleveland area.

Most independent and international films are unrated by the M.P.A.A.; therefore, viewer discretion is advised and any content warnings should be heeded. No person under the age of 10 will be admitted—except for Family Film screenings.

A late addition is a film that has been added to the CIFF schedule after the Program Guide has been printed.

An added screening is a supplementary screening time for a popular Festival film that is already a part of the CIFF program. Check the Latest Updates page or iPhone/Android mobile apps for up-to-date schedule changes and additions.

Discounted parking ($3.00 per visit) is offered WHEN AVAILABLE to CIFF patrons in the Tower City Center self-parking garage. Patrons must have their parking ticket validated at Tower City Cinemas to receive the discounted rate of $3.00 per visit. Please note that parking at Tower City Center is shared with other Tower City Center patrons, merchants, and employees, as well as the patrons of the Horseshoe Casino, Progressive Field, and Quicken Loans Arena. Parking is on a first-come, first-served basis and is therefore not guaranteed to CIFF patrons. We ask you to arrive at your film at least 20 minutes early, so please be sure to work in time for finding parking and getting from your car to the theater. Please allow at least 1 hour of extra travel time.

If you have a GPS system or access to internet mapping systems (e.g., Google Maps or MapQuest), use this address for directions to Tower City Center self-parking:

Tower City Center valetparking is free WHEN AVAILABLE for Executive Producer passholders and Movie Mogul passholders, as well as Corporate Sponsor passholders. Please present your Film Festival pass to receive free Tower City Center valet parking. Access to Tower City Center valet parking is located off of W 3rd Street between Prospect Avenue and W Huron Road.

For more information on transportation to Tower City Center and alternatives to Tower City Center self-parking, please visit Plan Your Day.

Seating is available at all screenings on a first-come, first-served basis.Ticket holders and passholders must arrive at least 20 minutes before the scheduled start of any screening for admission. Theater personnel may refuse to permit late seating. Seat-saving between screenings is not permitted. All patrons must leave the theater following each screening and take any personal belongings. Please allow additional travel time to ensure you arrive on time for your films.

Tower City Cinemas is located in the southeast corner of Tower City Center, just beyond the food court. If you have not already received your tickets, they will be at Will Call. For information on Will Call, please refer to "What is Will Call and where is it located?"

Lines for ticket holders form in the hallway to the right of the main entrance to Tower City Cinemas and are admitted to the theater no earlier than 10-15 minutes before show time.

Lines for Stand By ticket purchases and Stand By ticket holders will be in the hallway to the left of the main entrance to Tower City Cinemas. For the Stand By procedure, please refer to "What is Stand By and how does it work?"

Avoid the lines, Stand By, and sellouts by becoming a passholder! Passholders are admitted to the theater no earlier than 30 minutes prior to a film and no later than 15 minutes prior to a film.

Will Call, also known as the Duke Desk, is located in the hallway, just to the left of the main entrance to Tower City Cinemas. Tickets will be held in the last name of the purchaser. Please bring a printout of your order or a form of ID when picking up your tickets at Will Call.

Will Call for our neighborhood screenings can be picked up in advance at the Duke Desk at Tower City Cinemas, no later than 1 hour prior to the screening. One hour before the neighborhood screening, Will Call tickets will be available for pick up at the box office of the theater where the screening is taking place.

Please bring a printout of your order or a form of ID when picking up your order at Will Call.

Only a portion of available seats are sold in advance so we can save room for our passholders. Therefore, even for crowded films, we can often accommodate many patrons just before showtime.

Numbered Stand By tickets are sold (cash or voucher only) beginning one hour before showtime, outside the theatre lobby at Stand By. (Be aware a line sometimes forms earlier than this.) Then just before the film begins, Stand By ticket holders are admitted, in numerical order, on a space-available basis until the theater is full. Those who cannot get in receive a refund in the manner in which they paid. Cash or vouchers only; no check or credit cards accepted.

Stand By ticket purchases and line-up for neighborhood screenings will be available for purchase one hour prior to the screening at the neighborhood theater's box office and follow the same time frame as regular Stand By.

Hint: buy your tickets early or, better yet, become a passholder-level member to avoid Stand By!

Reserved seating is a benefit of Corporate Sponsor passholders and Day passholders, as well of the Executive Producer and Movie Mogul passholders. In addition to the reserved section seating, Movie Mogul members are guaranteed a reserved seat for themselves and one other ticketed guest to each screening of their choice. To take advantage of this perk, become a member today!

Festival merchandise can be purchased in-person during the Festival at the Film Festival Store, located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas.

39th CIFF merchandise can also be purchased post-Festival on our website or over the phone by contacting Debbie Marshall at 216.623.3456 x10. Merchandise from previous Festivals is also available for purchase on our website.

To purchase merchandise through our website, follow these steps:

1. Click the SUPPORT US link located at the top right of the home page.

2. Select the Merchandise tab to access a list of available CIFF merchandise.

3. For each item, select the size and quantity, and click ADD TO CART. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart.

4. If you are done adding items to your cart, click "go to cart" on the pop-up box or click the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

5. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, then click CHECKOUT NOW.

6. Enter your billing information and click CONTINUE.

7. Enter your payment information and hit PLACE ORDER.

You will receive an order confirmation number and a receipt will be sent via email, if provided.

4. In person at our Festival Challenge Match area, located to the left of the concessions in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas.

To make a donation through our website, follow these steps:

1. Click the SUPPORT US link located at the top right of the home page.

2. Select the amount you would like to donate from the drop-down menu next to "I LOVE THE CIFF THIS MUCH:". If you do not see the amount you wish to donate, select "Other" and enter the amount. Checkmark the box below to indicate if it is in honor or in memory of someone.

3. Click DONATE and a pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart.

4. Once you are done adding items to your cart, select "go to cart" on the pop-up box or click on the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

5. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, then click CHECKOUT NOW.

If you are interested in sponsorship opportunities and packages with the Festival, or are part of an organization or media outlet that would like to partner with the Festival, please contact our Associate Director, Patrick Shepherd, at 216.623.3456 x23 or at patrick@clevelandfilm.org.

The mission of the CIFF is exhibition and education; therefore, we do not distribute films screened during the Festival. However, Print Source contact information is located below most feature film descriptions in the Program Guide as well as on our website under the film's description page in the right-hand column. You can use this information to contact the distribution company/filmmaker about purchasing or viewing their film.

If you would like to purchase a gift membership, you can do so on our Membership page, by mailing in a completed order form with payment, or over the phone by calling Debbie Marshall at 216.623.3456 x10.

Because CIFF members are frequently contacted via mailings and emails, and are uniquely identified and gain access to membership benefits through their login (their email address) and password (of your or their choosing), it is important to provide the member's full contact information. If you do not have their full contact information we suggest purchasing a gift certificate instead.

It is also important to note if this membership is a renewal of a current membership, unless you have the member's current login and password, we suggest purchasing a gift certificate instead; otherwise there is a chance the recipient of the membership will have duplicate memberships in our system.

To purchase a gift membership through the website, follow these steps:

1. Click the white JOIN tab located at the top right of the home page.

2. Review the benefits of the different membership levels and click gift next to the desired membership level.

3. Then select who you would like the initial membership materials to be mailed to: the Member or the Purchaser. Please provide the member's full contact information. The member will not be initially contacted unless requested in the shipping fields of the order. A receipt notification of the order will only be sent to the billing email address and the shipping email address. Initial membership materials will be sent to the shipping address provided.

4. Enter the member contact information and click Add to Cart. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart. You can also access your cart through the shopping cart icon at the top right of the web page.

5. If you are done adding items to your cart, click go to cart on the pop-up box or click the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

6. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, and then click CHECKOUT NOW.

Give the gift of film by purchasing the film fan in your life a CIFF membership or gift certificate!

CIFF members at all levels enjoy advanced ticket sales (one week before sales to the general public!), discounts on CIFF tickets (a savings of $2 per ticket!), and 10% off CIFF merchandise and Film Feast events.

Gift certificates can be redeemed toward anything we sell, from CIFF memberships, tickets, and merchandise, to Film Feast tickets. The value of the gift certificate never expires, so the recipient can choose when to redeem it.

Whether or not to purchase a gift membership or gift certificate depends on the purchaser and the recipient. If buying a gift membership, some things to consider:

You will need the member’s full contact information.

CIFF members are frequently contacted via mailings and emails, and are uniquely identified and gain access to membership benefits through their login (their email address) and password (of your or their choosing). If you do not have their full contact information or are unsure if they are a current CIFF member, we suggest purchasing a gift certificate instead.

It helps to know if the recipient is a pre-existing CIFF member.

If you are unsure, we suggest placing the order via the phone (216.623.3456), so our staff can check member status and assist you with the order.

If the membership is a renewal of a current membership, unless you have the member's current login and password, we suggest purchasing the gift membership over the phone (216.623.3456) or purchasing a gift certificate instead; otherwise there is a chance the recipient of the membership will have duplicate memberships in our system.

If the recipient is new to the Festival.

If they have expressed interest in the Festival, a gift membership makes a wonderful gift.

If you are unsure of their availability during the Festival, we suggest purchasing a gift certificate (the value of which never expires!) that can be exchanged for CIFF memberships, tickets, merchandise, and Film Feast tickets.

If you are not currently a member or would like to purchase a gift membership, you can do so on our Membership page, by mailing in a completed order form with payment, or over the phone by calling Debbie Marshall at 216.623.3456 x10.

To purchase a membership through the website, follow these steps:

1. Click the white JOIN tab located at the top right of the home page.

2. Review the benefits of the different membership levels and click JOIN next to the desired membership level.

4. Enter the member contact information and click Add to Cart. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart. You can also access your cart through the shopping cart icon at the top right of the web page.

5. If you are done adding items to your cart, click go to cart on the pop-up box or click the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

6. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, then click CHECKOUT NOW.

You must first login. Click on LOGIN in the upper right corner of the home page. Enter your email (or Membership ID) and password. Click login. If you have forgotten your password click on Forgotten Password? to have it emailed to the address associated with your membership account.

Follow these steps to renew your membership:

1. Click the white JOIN link located at the top right corner of the page. You will be redirected to the membershp page. Membership levels and benefits will be listed.

2. Click the renew button next to the level you'd like to renew. Contact information will appear below which you can edit if need be. The page will refresh. Click on renew now button.

3. Click the Add to Cart button. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart.

4. If you are done adding items to your cart, click go to cart on the pop-up box or click the shopping cart icon at the top right of the page.

5. Review the order information to make sure it is correct, then click CHECKOUT NOW.

6. Enter your billing information and click CONTINUE.

7. Enter your payment information and hit PLACE ORDER.

You will receive an order confirmation number and a receipt will be sent via email, if provided.

If you do not remember your password, you can have it emailed to you at the email address you provided at sign-up. Click on the white LOGIN link at the top right of the page. Click on the Forgotten Password? link and enter your email or membership ID number. An email with login information will be sent to the email entered.

If you no longer have access to that email address or don't have your membership ID, please call Debbie Marshall at 216.623.3456 x10.

My Schedule allows members to select the films you want to see and add them to a custom schedule which is saved in your member profile.

Browse a complete alphabetical listing of films by clicking here. Click on a film title for a description. You can also browse the 39th CIFF Program per day by clicking the white FILMS link and selecting either the Films Listing or Films Schedule link.

Once logged in as a member, you can add films to My Schedule in one of two ways: before purchasing or during the checkout process. Please note you should choose only one of these two options as doing both may add duplicate screenings to your My Schedule and/or Cart.

To add films to My Schedule before purchasing:

1. From the film description page, select the screening date and time you plan on attending from the drop down menu located above the film’s photos/trailer.

2. Click the ADD TO SCHEDULE link located next to the screening times. The ADD TO SCHEUDLE option will change to ADDED! indicating the screening is now on My Schedule.

To view or edit My Schedule, click on the icon at the top of the page.

Remove films from My Schedule by clicking on the —FROM SCHEDULE button below the ADD TO CART button.

Add films to the Shopping Cart from My Schedule by first confirming you have selected the correct screening time and date, selecting a quantity of tickets, and clicking on the ADD TO CART button. A pop-up box will appear to confirm you have added items to your cart.

To add films to My Schedule from the Cart:

1. After adding the films of your choice to your Cart, click the ADD TO SCHEDULE button in your Cart for each film you would like added to My Schedule.

2. The ADD TO SCHEUDLE option will change to ADDED! indicating the screening is now on My Schedule.

As a Director, Executive Producer, or Movie Mogul member, when can I expect to receive my pass?

Passes and Opening Night Gala invitations will be mailed the week of March 2, 2015.

If you became a passholder member after March 11, 2015 your Pass and Opening Night Gala invitation will be held at Patron Services, located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas to the left of the concessions, and will be available for pick up after 5 PM on Opening Night (March 18, 2015).

I purchased a Director/Executive Producer/Movie Mogul membership last minute, How can I get my pass?

If you purchased your passholder memebrship on or before March 11, 2015, your Pass and Opening Night Gala ticket will be held at Patron Services, located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas to the left of the concessions. It will be available for pick up after 5 PM on Opening Night (March 18, 2015).

Day Passes are only available while supplies last during the Festival. They can only be purchased in-person at the Challenge Match for a donation of $150.00 per day for weekdays (Monday-Thursday) or $200.00 per day for weekend days (Friday-Sunday).

*Large orders containing 10 or More tickets will receive a discount of $2 off per ticket ($11/ticket for members and $13/ticket for non-members). This discount is not valid on Opening Night Gala tickets or in combination with another discount offer or discount code.

Please note tickets purchased via the phone, internet, or mail will be charged a $4 handling fee per order.

For members -- February 27, 2015 at 11 AM via the internet, phone (877.304.3456), mail (2510 Market Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44113, or in person at the Film Festival Box Office located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas.

For general public -- March 6, 2015 at 11 AM via the internet, phone (877.304.3456), mail (2510 Market Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44113), or in person at the Film Festival Box Office located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas.

Tickets are available for purchase online until 11 PM on the day before the screening. You may also purchase tickets by phone (877.304.3456) or in person at the Film Festival Box Office (located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas). See below for box office hours.

Day-of show tickets are only available for purchase in person at the Film Festival Box Office.

Ticket orders placed on orbefore March 10, 2015 via the internet, phone, or mail will be mailed to the address provided (unless indicated as Will Call by the purchaser).

Ticket orders placed after March 10, 2015 will be available for pick up prior to the Festival at the Film Festival Box Office (located in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas at the main box office) or during the Festival at Will Call.

Orders placed on or prior to March 10, 2015 will be mailed unless indicated differently by the customer. Orders placed after March 10, 2015 will be held at Will Call. For information on Will Call, please refer to What is Will Call and where is it located?

If you have not received your tickets within a few days of placing your order on or prior to March 10, 2015, or if your order arrives incomplete or is incorrect, contact the Film Festival Box Office by phone (877.304.3456) or email (tickets@clevelandfilm.org) and they will assist you.

In the event you have misplaced your CIFF tickets, please contact the Film Festival Box Office (877.304.3456 or tickets@clevelandfilm.org) or visit them during hours of operation, in the lobby of Tower City Cinemas at the main box office. CIFF personnel will locate your ticket order in our system by order number or the last name of the purchaser.

Tickets are reserved for a screening of a specific film with a specific screening time and date. Vouchers are non-specific and therefore, will not admit you to a film. Vouchers are not for purchase and must be exchanged in-person for tickets to specific screenings. Exchange as early as possible to avoid Stand By or sellouts!

Gift certificates can be purchased online through our website on the Gift Certificates page, over the phone (216.623.3456 x10), or in person at our Business Office (2510 Market Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44113).

Gift Certificates are redeemable for CIFF events, tickets, membership, and merchandise. Gift Certificates are not redeemable for concessions.

To purchase a gift certificate through our website, follow these steps:

1. Click the SUPPORT US link located at the top right of the home page.

Volunteering

What types of volunteer opportunities are available at the Festival?

We are so grateful to our hundreds of volunteers who wear many hats at the Festival. They assist with Challenge Match, Stand By, Merchandise Store, Patron Services, Hospitality Headquarters, and Parking. Duties include ballot distribution and collection, ushering patrons in the theaters, monitoring the lobby and hallways, parking validation, and maintaining the reserved seating section of the theaters.